Today was a very special day, as it was Karen’s birthday!
We started the day in Banff National Park and ended it in Yoho National Park. Along the drive, we were treated to some of the most jaw-dropping scenery we have yet encountered in our travels. Although the drive was only a bit over 1.5 hours, nearly all of it was spectacular.
As we were winding thorough the Rockies, we stopped off at a beautiful picnic area along Finn Creek for lunch. This creek, like so many other waterways in this area, was the same bright aquamarine color. We were able to walk out along the flowing currents, on ground which looked like sand. Except it was much firmer, harder. Moreso than the sand just at the surf’s edge near the ocean.
This hardpack was formed by an accumulation of “glacial flour”. Glacial flour is an amazingly fine silt produced when the movement of glaciers over limestone literally grinds the stone into powder. Very much like a miller’s stone produces flour from wheat. This “flour”, however, flows into waterways with the snowmelt. The reflection of light off of this silt is what gives the water the aquamarine hue. And when this powder accumulates along rivers, it forms a very tightly compacted surface which looks almost like the rock from which it started. Truly wonderful to experience!
We were also able to take Daisy out and let her run around near the water, which gives her tremendous joy. We don’t let her into the actual water, but she always goes crazy when it’s nearby. Plus getting her a little exercise during the day helps her not be so annoying at night! Karen would say, “needy”, but I call it like I see it!
Our next three nights will be spent just outside the town of Golden, British Columbia. The campground is nestled just above the town and valley, affording us a tremendous view from our site. Barren, jagged peaks dominate the sky for almost the entirety of the view.
As we left our lunch spot, Karen reminded my of my birthday on the road, just over 18 months ago. It was the first night of our first BIG trip (only 19 days, but at that point it seemed incomprehensible). We spent the evening at a rest stop on route 79 in the mountains just south of Charleston, West Virginia.
That night was noisy (truck traffic all night) and scary (truck traffic very close to our RV all night.) We didn’t run out the slide. We didn’t sleep well. We were scared of what the future of that trip might bring. As I look back, we were SO clueless. But that was one of the best birthdays I ever had because we were beginning this wonderful journey together.
And now here we sit, two weeks into a 10-week trip. We know a LOT more than we did back then, but we’re still learning. And this time it is Karen’s turn to celebrate on the road. Eating our absolute favorite Livvy dinner (hamburger helper), drinking martinis, and looking out over the vast expanse of the Great White North, it is hard to imagine a better way to spend a birthday. I cannot imagine being more privileged than to spend my life than alongside this amazing woman.
Happy birthday, Karen!
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